Tantalizing Tendencies
by Atari Atagashi-Chan
Summary: YAOI Taking on a new team had never been this hard. It had been ten years. But I never knew you weren't dead...I never would have taken this boy in if I had known you were alive... Yet, I've grown so attached. Sasuke...please... forgive me KakaSasu/KakaOC
1. Curiosity Killed The Cat

PAIRING: KakashixOC/KakashixSasuke

FULL Summary: I was resistant to taking on a whole new team at first. It had been ten years, could you really blame me? Yet, when I saw those painful eyes, I knew I had a purpose in this. I had been assigned to watch over Akira for a reason. A reason that would soon develop into a passion I never thought would bloom. After hearing of my favourite students death (slaughtered mercilessly by Konoha shinobi, nonetheless), there seemed to be nothing left to live for... This boy brought a new passion to my life. A reason to live. A reason to exist. Yet, the lies the death report had fed me that day nearly killed me. How was it possible to feel worse than that? I never knew you weren't dead...I never would have taken this boy in if I had known you were alive... Yet, I've grown so attached.. Sasuke...please... forgive me.

BASICALLY, a complicated love triangle.

**I know everyone can't stand OC's. I can't either. But I'm posting this anyways simply because I can. Don't hate me just because I decided to write something substantial with OC's. Please&thanks.**  
_Don't like, don't read._

**-Atari**

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_Kakashi's POV_

When I walked into Iruka's classroom, I had no idea what to expect. It had been so long since I had entered this room. I had resigned from being a team leader nearly ten years ago now. Forced into a turmoil of depression when informed of Sasuke's death, I had secluded myself from the world... But when Tsunade had requested I take on three new genin, I merely sighed and shrugged. I knew even if I had said no, she would have ordered me to anyways. Not much unlike Shikamaru, I remained apathetic and avoided conflict. Though, today, the idea was seeming to excite me when I saw the varied faces of the young 13-year-old's I'd have on my team.

"…and after I call your name from the list and assign you to a designated area to meet your sensei, please exit the classroom and proceed to the area of which I...designated?" Iruka sounded, squinting at the paper below him under his reading glasses. Years of attempting to read in the dark had finally caught up with him. After clearing his throat, he tucked the paper into his pocket, putting away his speech. Looking up to the eager faces of the many students in the classroom, Iruka smiled widely. "I'm so proud of you guys." He whispered, not daring to let his voice break by speaking any louder. "I know you'll all do well."

I couldn't help but smirk at that. The poor man always teared-up as every occasion ended. And it always made me want to take him in my arms and hug him. I almost accidentally let a small chuckle pass my lips, but refrained, satisfying myself by widening my smirk.

I watched with the other jounin as Iruka trudged to the podium, drawing a paper from one of the lower compartments and adjusting his reading glasses as he straightened himself. "I will call you by last name comma first. Alright, Team 1…"

I guess I kind of zoned as Iruka dictated the teams. Name after name was called, reactions slipping from euphoric to angry to depressed. It wasn't until my beloved dolphin serenaded my team number that his voice even registered as more than a sweet lull in my mind.

"…and on team 7..."

Team 7... Naruto, Sakura,… and Sasuke. With a sigh, I shook my head and attempted to regain focus, fixating my one uncovered eye on the remaining bewildered academy students.

"Hasegawa, Reiji."

A rather surprised look shot up from two bright fuchsia coloured eyes. With an eager and slightly vixen-like smile towards Iruka, a female in the front of the room got to her feet, slight blush across her face as her friends giggled around her. Her bright snow-white hair was tied up in high pig tails on either side of her head, adorned with fluffy pink puff-balls dangling from each hair tie. Though she was slender and had a foxy look to her, I could tell she was tough from her demeanor. She was the type that defined "don't judge a book by it's cover". Her two glowing cat-like eyes warned a danger to those around her and set herself above the others, as though saying "I am alpha."

I felt a subtle tingling sensation at my fingertips. Her personality was unreadable as of yet. Interesting, indeed.

"Shibuya, Nowaki."

Before my mind even registered the name, a loud shout was heard from behind the white-haired girl.

"YES!" A voice screamed as a boy with messy fiery red fluffy hair thrust a fist into the air. His emerald green eyes sparkled with adrenalin, fanged teeth gleaming a bright white with a wide smile. I watched as the girl dubbed Reiji turned around laughing as she high-fived the boy behind her.

"Epic!" She chimed, voice sharp and ringing like crystal. "I can't believe we're gonna be on the same damn team!"

"I know!" The Irish-looking boy laughed loudly.

Iruka cleared his throat from the front of the room, quieting the two.

"Kawayama, Akira."

The two formerly cheering buddies in the front stiffened noticeably. Slowly, they turned to look across to the back corner of the room. I followed their gaze.

One gleaming electric purple eye gazed down at Iruka blankly, then slowly moved to look at Nowaki and Reiji. The boy in the back of the room stood, a discrete air of tainted innocence about him. His hair fell to his shoulders in the front, a deep, ebony black in colour with a distinct blue hue to it. His bangs shortened just barely above the one visible eye and completely concealed the other within it's realms. I began to wonder why. It wasn't till he nearly got to the front of the room that I noticed it was tied into a short, smooth ponytail in the back. Unlike Nowaki's hair, this boy's hair was pin-straight, making it almost irresistible to want to touch.

I heard several girls whisper and squeal to one another as he passed them. Ah, the Sasuke phenomenon.

An air of nostalgia passed me as I compared these three to my last team.

Nowaki compared best to Naruto, I suppose. He was somewhat more like the mature Naruto I knew now than the one whom I had known as a kid. A prankster, class clown… yet, knows when to be serious and where to draw the line. A happy-go-lucky sort of kid, always looking on the bright side. Possibly even fair to say an optimist. And, possibly, a hazard...

Reiji, obviously, to Sakura. Though, there wasn't much to compare between these two, similarity-wise, except the cat-like formation of their eyes. Yet I could judge nearly nothing of this girl as of yet. She was simply too intricate.

And this boy now, Akira, to Sasuke. As I gazed on this boy, taking his appearance in a little longer, I noticed he was smaller than Sasuke. I blinked in surprise as I caught a glimpse of golden-yellow beneath the other side of his hair. Two different coloured eyes. So, that was why... I didn't let my mind stray too far on that. I figured I'd find out soon enough. Yet, even moreso than that, the thing that caught me wasn't the bandages cluttering his porcelain white skin that made him look almost dead in contrast to his dark, ebony hair or the two deep vertical scar marks drawn over his visible eye, but the hollow vacancy that lay beyond his puppy-like eyes; the almost fearful and paranoid way in which he walked, as though afraid someone would jump out and hit him; the innocence that had once so obviously been there that had been shattered too abruptly for a human to handle.

This boy was not like Sasuke at all.

As I pursed my lips, I realized how strong and apathetic Sasuke always had been in his youth. This boy looked as though he put up a front similar to that of Sasuke, holding back the frightened, submissive person that he really was.

Yet, it seemed as though I was the only one the entire room that even took notice.

"…may I ask why Kawayama and I are on the same team?" Nowaki huffed. Iruka looked surprised.

"Well, as I said at the beginning, we place you in teams by class rank… it's to help increase your teamwork ability and assist you in learning new things and getting better at what you're failing." My dolphin looked slightly piqued as he flipped through sheets of paper. "And you, Nowaki, have the lowest class average. Akira, however, has the highest-"

I could tell not another word registered in Nowaki's mind. Selective hearing. The boy rolled his eyes, looked to Reiji, then to Akira, then to Reiji again, then back to Akira. To my surprise, a smile appeared on the boy's face.

"Told you we'd be on the same team, Akira!" Nowaki hollered, hopping over the tables to get to the front. Reiji followed in his wake. Akira looked back, his small cherry-tainted lips closed and unreadable as that hurt purple orb gazed out towards the other. Nowaki smiled broadly, forcibly grabbing Akira's arm and running towards the door, dragging the poor child along with him.

Once again, I suppose I was the only one who noticed Akira flinch at the feeling of touch.

I desired to reach out and pull them back; take Akira in my arms! Pet him, love him. Tell him it was okay and I wouldn't allow anyone to hurt him further.

I didn't move from my position till they had closed the door behind them, wedging them inevitably out of my sight. Absentmindedly, I found myself placing a hand to my chest. Never in my life had a felt such a fast heartbeat.

Iruka droned on with Team 8.

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A/N: I'm a big fan of KakaSasu if you couldn't tell (cough favourite pairing cough) and Kakashi is my favourite character in the whole series, so meh. I always imagine what would happen if Kakashi got another team, so this is the product. **I don't plan on writing many A/N's if any at all **after this little itty bitty chapter **hence why this is uber long**. So…yeah. All characters other than Akira, Nowaki, and Reiji © Masashi Kishimoto. _BEHIND THE NAMES (slightly similar to a disclaimer)_: I love the name Akira for a guy, so… yeah. It took me forever to think of a last name since I kept thinking of Akira Kogame from Lucky Star. Lol. Nowaki, I heard off Junjou Romantica first (Junjou Egoist couple! HiroxNowaki=love). It apparently means typhoon. Reiji, I heard from Gravitation a long while back. I heart Rage (Reiji's nickname) and that name. Not to mention I'm not good with female names. Lol. So there you have it.

_I haven't written anything in almost a full year now due to this infinite turmoil of writers block I'm experiencing due to issues. Forgive me, my fans (who have probably abandoned me by now). Maybe someday I can update something. For now, I'll be working on this since it's the only thing I'm able to write at this moment in time._

_Much love and apologies,_

Atari


	2. First Encounter

_Kakashi's POV_

Walking these halls felt like a dream to me. These were the halls of Team 7's origin; the place where it all began. I felt a pang in my heart at the recollection of Sasuke. It was all my fault we had lost him. If only I had watched him closer…If only…

Silently, I stood in front of the door I had entered nearly twenty years ago to meet my new team. I could just hear Naruto laughing obnoxiously behind it, Sakura yelling retorts back, and Sasuke's silence echoing and reverberating through my mind like a ghostly trance.

I released an inward sigh as I placed my hand lightly on the doorknob. Half of me expected something like an eraser to fall on my head when I opened it. I almost grinned at that memory. Almost.

Twisting it open, I walked right into the trap I had predicted. Why I hadn't dodged it…not even I really knew.

"HAHA! Gotcha!" Nowaki laughed loudly, then turned and poked Reiji roughly. "Toooold you he'd fall for it! You owe me 10 yen!" The white-haired kunoichi rolled her eyes, crossing her arms.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." She mused, biting the inside of her cheek. The Irish-looking boy grinned wickedly.

I just stared at them with my one uncovered eye, then found myself drifting to the side to look at Akira, who was sitting there silently, feet dangling over the edge of the desktop he was sitting on, looking up at me from under a shock of blue-hued ebony with that innocent heliotrope eye. Looking at it, it almost looked see-through, like a polished gem of kunzite.

For a second, I swore I saw that beautiful purple flash a crimson red, three glimmering tomoe glaring right back at me. Yet, when I blinked, it had vanished.

"Sensei?"

A soft, formerly rough, female voice awoke me from my delirium. This heavy nostalgia was weighing on me too heartily. If Tsunade had expected me to return to my old self the day of accepting a new team, she was terribly mistaken. Tucking myself away for so long had only made my personality more warped than before. And it was showing at an alarming magnitude.

"Ah, sorry, sorry," I mumbled, attempting to think of something I would've said in the past. It was deplorable that I actually had to think of something I'd say. "Just losing myself in time." Not exactly fitting to the scenario, but it was something.

When I saw the three of them cock their heads, I plucked the eraser from my hair and set it aside, approaching them slowly. The chalk probably showed up well in my hair, for it had become more grey than silver. Old age, I figured, albeit being only in my early 40's now. Though, I simply didn't care.

I opened my mouth to speak, though they probably couldn't tell under the mask, and was cut off by Nowaki's somewhat obnoxious voice.

"So, you're a jounin who can't even dodge an eraser? Laaaame." He spouted. I blinked, opening my mouth again to speak, this time getting cut off by Reiji.

"Shut the hell up, moron!" She yelled, hitting him over the back of the head. "Don't you even know who our sensei is!?" I heard her drop her voice to a whisper. "That's Kakashi, damnit. White Fang's son. Copy nin. The one who practically saved Konoha from Akatsuki and trained _the_ Naruto Uzumaki! Hello!" She growled, whacking him repetitively. Nowaki's mouth dropped open as he looked back to me.

"Well, now that we all know who I am…" I mused, a little surprised to see I was still well-known throughout the village even after being on hiatus for ten years. "How about we get to know each other?"

"Eh?" Nowaki questioned. "You mean like 'hello, my name is' type of getting to know?"

"Precisely." I replied, raising an eyebrow at him. "Please, start us off."

Nowaki shifted and heaved a sigh. He reminded me somewhat of Shikamaru. "I'm, of course, Nowaki Shibuya. Everyone knows me because I'm simply just that amazing. That good enough for you, sensei?"

I blinked. All traces of him relating to Naruto recalled themselves in my mind. "Hobbies? Goals?" I inquired.

"Hobbies, eh. Being awesome. Goals…" I noticed a strong smile approach his lips then burst towards the surface. "To become the village's best and most loyal Black Ops medic nin! Which, should be a achieved here shortly."

I glanced at the female of the trio, noticing her fist clenched tightly at her side. "You had the lowest grades in the damn class. You're lucky you even passed, dimwit." She growled, simultaneously grinding her teeth and glaring at him from an angle. Nowaki smiled wider.

"Doesn't mean I'm not great."

I was hoping, very strongly at that, that this obnoxious cocky aura was just a stage of youth. Though, I wasn't so sure.

"And you?" I intervened, looking at the white-haired nin. At the mention of her, she perked, smiling warmly in my direction.

"Well, to start off, my name is Reiji Hasegawa! I love most people, except Nowaki. I'm nice to most people, except Nowaki. I'm a little hot tempered, especially towards Nowaki. I'm a _really_ good chef, unlike Nowaki and I was third highest in our class, totally opposite of Nowaki. My hobbies are reading, drawing, and singing, all of which I can do better than Nowaki. And I hate studying, so I'm really a hands on kinda learner, which, surprisingly, is like Nowaki. Um, let's see…oh! I hate rules, I hate discipline, and, most of all, I hate not being in charge, which is why I like Nowaki as a friend. My biggest goal is to work in the Autopsy rooms when I'm older and to hopefully be in charge, too! I just _love_ examining dead bodies…oh, um, um… I have lots of other goals, too, wanna hear?!" She asked, blinking happily towards me. If I hadn't known better, I would've checked to see if she had a tail wagging. From that alone, I sensed a slight hostility towards Nowaki…though, maybe it was just my imagination.

"Uh, no, that's quite enough…" I almost found myself stuttering she had caught me so off guard. "And…" I looked to Akira. I didn't have the courage to speak his name aloud. He looked up at me and, luckily, understood I meant him.

"…I'm Akira. Akira Kawayama," He started off in a small voice. Silently, he hesitated. "Um…"

"Hobbies?" I inquired. He looked to the side for a moment, taking an abnormal interest in the cicada attempting to crawl up the wall. After what seemed like a few minutes of pause, he shook his head, still staring at the cicada. "Goals?" I asked. He shrugged, a little too quickly. I arched an eyebrow.

"Oh, come on! There's gotta be _something_!" Nowaki pushed, sounding slightly annoyed. Akira looked over to the other questioningly. "I mean…you're the top of our class. You seriously have no goals?"

The black-haired boy stared blankly at Nowaki for a few moments, then let his eyes veer towards me. Then, they hit the floor.

"I guess…my goal…" He whispered. "…is to live."

Nowaki and Reiji both contorted their faces into confusion.

"Eh? What kinda goal is that?" Nowaki probed.

"An honest one, moron." Reiji growled, blushing slightly. I sensed Reiji liked Akira. Then again, I understood her affection completely. Just looking at him would make even the most cold-hearted of people want to hug him.

"Well, then," I cleared my throat gently. "Tomorrow, 7am, I want the three of you on the training grounds."

"Eh?" Nowaki squinted at me skeptically. "What for?"

"To get to know one another on a more…" I searched for the right word. "…intimate level." I then smirked under my mask maliciously. The three looked at me curiously. "And, yes. It's mandatory."

"Mandatory!?" Nowaki groaned.

"Yes." I replied. "Oh, and…" I couldn't believe I had almost forgotten the most important rule. "No breakfast."

"EH!?"

After a few minutes of newly inspired whining from Nowaki and yelling from Reiji, the three set off home, as did I.

After walking through the door of the apartment of which I currently resided, I began the hunt for the two little silver bells I tested every new team with. It had been so long since I had used them, but I knew I had them…somewhere.

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"_Sensei…"_

_That voice… I know that voice. I crave that voice. Every second…every painful second of my life!_

"_Kakashi-sensei…"_

_Stop it. Stop it!_

"_You killed me, sensei."_

_Can't you hear me? Am I not speaking? Who are you? Who are you!?_

"_I'm dead because of you."_

_It's you… it really is you. Wait. Don't leave! Sasuke, come back! Come back to me!_

"_It's all your fault."_

_SASUKE!_

"…_all… your… fault."_

_No…no, you know I never meant to let you leave Konoha! It wasn't my fault. It wasn't my fault!!_

"_Kakashi…"_

_No…no!_

"_Kakashi."_

_STOP IT!_

"Kakashi!?"

"AAH-…P-Pakkun…" I had flung the poor dog all the way across to the other side of the room by sitting up so abruptly. I swallowed, feeling a lump in my throat. I hadn't noticed my breathin-…or, rather…hyperventilating till I heard my heart beating rapidly in my head. My entire body was entranced in a cold sweat.

"…you alright Kakashi?" Pakkun questioned me. I stared at the little dog, who had crawled back on to the bed and sat on it's haunches over my legs.

"How did you get here?" I asked. I didn't remember summoning him prior to now.

"Er…you summoned me in your sleep again."

Christ. More sleep summoning. It had become more and more consistent through the days. I had even made clones in my sleep and formed a chidori. It seemed summoning was most prominent nowadays, though. Why? I had no idea…

"What time is it?" I asked, suddenly remembering how I had told the three to meet me at seven.

"About eight thir-"

"EIGHT!?" I exclaimed, throwing off my covers, and Pakkun, and leaping out of bed in a rush. Why hadn't my alarm gone off?

As I dressed as hurriedly as I could, Pakkun sat on the end of the bed and watched me with those tired, beady, black eyes. Throwing on my hitai-ate over my sharingan and fixing my hair with a quick comb, I headed for the door only to be stopped by little teeth yanking at my ankle. I looked down.

"Forgwet sumfin?" Pakkun asked me, two bells dangling from his mouth.

"Ah…right, thanks." I said quickly, yanking them from his mouth. When I turned, I still felt the little teeth once more. "What?" I asked, annoyance peaking in my voice.

"Are you going to keep me summoned, Kakashi?" He asked me. I blinked. Oh, right…

I quickly withdrew the summons. The second Pakkun was out of my sight, I headed off at a pace as quickly as possible. With that speed, it didn't take long for me to reach the training ground I had specified, of course, only to be greeted by complaints from the noisiest two of the group.

"DID YOU NOT SAY SEVEN!?" Reiji growled at me, balling a fist in the air. Nowaki looked equally perturbed.

"Sorry I'm late. I'm afraid I got lost on the path of life," I mused. The words had come forth before I had even knew what I had said. That was a good sign; some of me was slowly returning. I saw Nowaki about to open his mouth, but I cut him off by raising a hand. "None of you have eaten yet, correct? No lying. I'll know."

The three of them looked at each other.

"Not that I know of, which is a real damn pain, might I add." Reiji cursed through clenched teeth.

"Not me." Nowaki added, crossing his arms and glaring at me. Akira simply shook his head.

"Splendid." I clapped both hands together. "Now, then…" Then pulled them apart, only to reveal the two bells. "Allow me to explain the rules."

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A/N: Special thanks to my gf, CrazyMichelle, who helped me with writer's block several times by giving me prompt ideas. This chappie wouldn't be the same without her. Lol. Look her up. :3


	3. Impossibility

**Kakashi's POV - CHAPTER 3  
**

Everything seemed quiet, maybe even a little too quiet. I looked up from my book, the continuations of Jiraiya's Icha Icha series by Naruto, only to stare through the glistening emerald leaves up at a pale, baby blue; a single white cloud passing me by. With a sigh, I allowed my one available eye to drift back down to the pages of the book, scanning over the kanji carelessly. I wasn't even focused, technically, just attempting to look occupied and, for lack of better word, apathetic. Normally, I at least had some sort of reference as to where my students were during this entrance exam but, oddly, this time I had none. I would have thought at least Nowaki would have made a little noise. Or Reiji...she was always rather loud. Yet, I had nothing. As I let my subconscious overtake me, those fatal memories seemed to seep back to me like a poison. Sasuke...why...I don't understand.

It wasn't long before Sasuke had faded into Akira and I felt my subconscious being devoured. I glanced around, my blurry vision coming into focus with reality. "Akira...?" I whispered, swearing I had seen him. But, no...there was no way; no one was even around me. I sighed once more and realloted my eyes onto the kanji. It took not but even two minutes before my mind had grasped the nostalgia that was Sasuke once more. Yet, this time, I didn't have the right length of time for Akira to pop into my mind. A faint rustling noise awoke me from my trance.

I didn't take my eyes off the page for a moment. I knew exactly where she was. A twig snapped, an exaggerated "Shoot!" echoing in its wake. A small smirk perked my lips. To think these children would be the future of Konoha. I heard a thump, almost causing a small snort to escape me from amusement, then a yowl, and I shook my head. I almost wanted to tell her to start over and try again, but I decided to give no indication that I knew she was there. Learning from mistakes might just be the only true way to learn.

But, I had been so focused on Reiji and so uncaring that I didn't even notice Nowaki at my side till he was touching the bell. Hmm, teamwork, maybe?

"NOWAKI! YOU IDIOT, THAT'S MINE! GET AWAY FROM THERE!!" Reiji shouted, jumping out of the bush clumsily. I rolled my eyes; nevermind.

"Yours? There's two! We can both get one!" Nowaki retorted, growling at the white haired kunoichi in front of him. She looked him dead in the eye; two magenta orbs meeting cerulean.

"Seriously, you think I'd actually let you get one? Akira and I will be the ones that pass."

"Bang. Bang."

Both nin stopped dead, looking over to me. I held my hand in the form of a gun, pointed directly between them.

"If this had been a real fight," I started, apathy dripping from every syllable. "You both would have been dead."

The pair stared at me in a dazed stupor, shock piercing them thoroughly. I allowed my hand to drop with a sigh. "I don't think I've ever seen a more pitiful group of academy students ev-" I felt the icy chill run down my spine only seconds before it would have hit me, giving me barely half a second to use a replacement jutsu with the nearest uprooted stump I could find. I had relocated myself in the top of a tree, perched on branches surprisingly unfamiliar to me. I twitched. There was no way a kid of his level could have pulled off...

The sky turned black, the tree and forest floor seeping helplessly into a pool of ebony, blurring the reality lines between sky and land.

I couldn't believe it. Akira was a genjutsu user; and a good one at that. But just when had he...-I didn't have time to think. There were needles raining in on me already. Ice needles. I closed my eyes, remaining calm. He was just a kid; repelling this should be like second nature to me. Yet, I was having slight problems. There seemed to be...an interference. It felt almost as though part of my brain had been blocked off or even eradicated. I couldn't access the part of me that was the repellent. It seemed almost...password protected.

"Sensei."

More than a thousand needles rained in on me, piercing my body through every pore. It stung, but didn't seem to actually hurt. A paralyzation technique? The innocent voice echoed around me, closing out my mind to all thoughts except his voice alone. This was no ordinary genjutsu...this was S-ranked forbidden jutsu! Simple, though it was, efficiency seemed to be the only key here. I took a slow deep breath. As much as I hated to admit it, this level of illusion was above me. I felt baffled. Sure, it was easy enough to pull off, but keeping it up and preventing the target's escape with such fluid ease... This was impossible!...wasn't it?

I opened my eyes to gaze upon what lay before me. My eyes were the only thing I _could_ move. Extraordinarily, the fallacy that was plaguing me so seemed to vanish into thin air, leaving reality and two stunned genin in it's wake. I blinked, chest heaving. What in the hell had just happened?

My hand then slipped down to the bells...or, bell, I should say. "Damnit." I cursed in spite of myself, slowing my panicked breathing. I had thought I was returning to the old Kakashi I had been so long ago, but this proved I still wasn't myself. The old Kakashi wouldn't have allowed himself to become so trepidated over a simple paralysis technique induced by a mere genin nonetheless, even if it was S-ranked. I wanted to say I didn't know what was wrong with me, but I did. It was _him_. That damn Sasuke.

"Kakashi-sensei?" A female voice asked worriedly. I had my hand wrapped firmly around the remaining bell, making certain no one took it. My eyes panned the perimeter, searching for the devious little boy that had stripped me of my pride and rank; if even for a brief moment. He was no where; not even a trace of chakra left to follow. He was good...too good.

I closed my eyes, collecting myself, then cleared my throat; releasing my hold on the single remaining bell.

"Why are you just standing there?" I asked, keeping my voice low. The two looked bewilderedly to me. I help up the bell in front of them. "Have you forgotten your mission?" It was then that shock spread onto their faces; they had forgotten. I sighed, deciding this was pointless. "Nevermind," I whispered. "The purpose of this exercise was not, actually, to obtain a bell. Can either of you tell me what it was?" Nowaki and Reiji looked at each other, stupefied.

"To..." Nowaki started, holding a finger to his pursed lips. "Umm."

"To display what we could do?" Reiji chimed in. I shook my head.

"Not quite."

The snow-haired kunoichi huffed, crossing her arms beneath her breasts.

"Teamwork." A small voice sounded from above. I felt my heart leap as I looked to the sound. Akira.

"Teamwork!?" Nowaki sounded. "There's no way...is there, Sensei? Is that it?" He questioned me. Yet, I was too focused on the boy perched casually in a tree glaring down at me with that pained puppy dog eye; an added fierceness penetrating it's gentle electric purple. "Senseeei..." Nowaki probed. Akira cocked his head at me, his eye was locked with mine. And, for a split second, I could have sworn I saw a smirk caress the right side of his lips upwards. I twitched, never one to favour a cocky attitude. "Sensei!" I looked over to the pair staring at me.

"Uh, right," I nodded. "Teamwork."

"Lame." Reiji growled.

"I'd say the fact that neither of you got a bell is even lamer." I retorted. It may have been childish of me, but I was having a rather hard time holding my tongue with these two. My patience was growing thin.

"Neither of them?" That same timid voice sounded behind me. I whipped around, almost running smack dab into the child. He was standing directly behind me, hands clasped behind his back looking up at me innocently. I squinted, looking to his hands. Not a bell in sight. I held out a hand. He furrowed his brow.

"The bell." I demanded. He cocked his head; a small smile befell his lips as his raven black hair gleamed a distinct light navy in the sunlight.

"I don't have it." He whispered, outturning his pockets and showing me his empty hands. No...there was no way; I searched him up and down with my eyes, not attempting to be pedophilic. Not a bell was in sight.

"Where did you put it?" I interrogated. He shrugged.

"I never got a bell. I just got here."

* * *

I lay awake all night staring directly at the ceiling. It was so dark I could barely see the outline of anything in the room. Yet, the flat, opaque ceiling provided a soft canvas for my eyes to paint pictures of my past on. Sasuke...how I missed you. Akira was so much like you. After ten years, I had only just begun to force myself to forget about you and Akira just brought back my feelings tenfolded from prior.

I rolled over in an attempt to forget everything I could _'Sleep, Kakashi,'_ I told myself. _'Just go to sleep.'_ Yet, everytime I told myself this, it only made me more awake and more aware. I sat up in the darkness of my apartment, taking a deep breath before glancing over to the alarm. I had guessed it might have been about 11pm, but my eyes told me differently. It was already a little past two in the morning. I flopped back down on the mattress, pressing my hands to my eyes.

Little, blurry rainbow speckles flooded my vision as my eyes remained forcably closed. I laid there like that in a stasis for what seemed like hours before finally sitting up and sliding out of bed onto my bare feet, realizing it had only been a little over five minutes. Time was passing far too slowly. It was giving me time to think and that was the last thing I wanted. I trudged into the bathroom, turning on the faucet calmly and filling the sink with cool water. I looked up slightly, glaring at my own wearied reflection from beneath my grey hair; once a sparkling silver, now a faded, aged grey. I studied the creased lines in my face thinking _'that couldn't be me' _all the while. Yet, it was. This is what losing him had done to me.

I cupped my hands and delved them deep into the cool, clear substance, pulling a significant amount up and splashing it to my face. It woke me up, alright. I looked back at my reflection, water dripping off my bangs, nose, and lips. I didn't look nearly as old this time. Was it the night playing tricks on me? I shook my head, spraying water from my bangs around the compact room before turning and walking out, newly awakened. I grabbed my coat, not bothering with my mask or hitai-ate. Or even to put on some shoes. I walked out in my striped blue pajamas. I just didn't care anymore.

* * *

I didn't know where I was headed till I got there. Knocking lightly on the door, I heard a tired "enter" from behind it's thick paneling. I turned the knob slowly, pushing the door open with the palm of my available hand.

"Godaime-sama..." I whispered into the dark. No lights were on. I heard the squeal of her chair as Tsunade turned to face me. I could just barely make out the outline of her tired expression. She was the same as me; these past ten years had aged us all more than they should have. Nearly 5 years ago, Konoha had to rebuild itself from scratch in lue of a terrorist attack. We had lost so many; our precious Godaime still blamed herself.

"Kakashi." She greeted with a slight nod. Ten years ago, she would have waved a hand at me and told me to drop the formalities; that titles like Godaime and adding the honorific of sama didn't fit her. Currently, she seemed to accept the title. I closed the door behind me, engulfing us in total darkness. The only light that allowed us to see each other clearly was the light of the full moon peeking through the window; bathing a misconstrued rectangular section of the room in a light blue-ish-yellow.

I stood opposite her, hands at my side in front of her desk. My brow seemed permanently furrowed in a frown. Sensei _had_ always said if I didn't start smiling, the creases in my forhead would be stuck there forever. I could have sworn he was lying.

I paused, a lump caught in my throat. Honestly, I didn't know why I was here. I hadn't even thought that Tsunade would actually be awake at this hour. I pursed my lips, feeling suddenly naked without my mask to hide my subtle expressions. Tsunade let out a long breath she had been holding, getting slowly to her feet and walking to my side. She seemed to have shrunk over the years, the top of her head barely even reaching my neck now.

"What's troubling you, Kakashi?" She asked, eyes contemplative and sympathetic. Did I even have to say it? I could tell she knew... I told her this with my eyes as best I could. She nodded and began to pace around the room. "I've been thinking," She started in a louder, more confident voice. I bit my lip. Thinking about what, I wanted to ask, but I couldn't bring myself to speak. She continued, answering my unspoken inquiry. "Do you know of Akira's home life?" I had to fight to keep listening as his name casually slipped from her lips, piercing me deeper than eyes could see and leaving a burning residue in it's wake. I swallowed and shook my head slightly. "Well, you do have a right to know because what I'm about to say pertains to that."

When silence filled the air, I felt minutes pass us by in the form of hours once more. I couldn't keep this awkward silence prolonged any further. "What?" I asked simply, not knowing what else to say. She turned to me, her once golden eyes a dull, mustard yellow.

"...I can't say just yet. I need more time." She whispered. I felt my eyebrows push together.

"What?" I repeated, more straight-forward in my voice this time.

"For now," She began again. "I want you to watch over him, Kakashi. That's all for now. I was going to call you in later this morning to speak to you about this, but you beat me to it." She pressed a weak smile in my direction. I didn't smile back.

"Watch over?" I mimed, wanting clarity, elaboration. My voice almost cracked. I had watched over Sasuke...and I had lost him. Would history repeat itself? I didn't know if I could fight another internal war. Tsunade simply nodded. I could tell there was more she wasn't telling me. Ten years ago, I wouldn't have even thought of questioning the Godaime. Yet, the words were licking at my lips before I could hold my tongue. "What aren't you telling me, Tsu-...Godaime-sama?" I corrected myself. She smiled, for the first time all night, without having to force it.

"You still haven't lost your touch, eh." She laughed lightly. I didn't find any of this funny. When she noted my serious demeanor, her smile dropped and her eyes locked with mine. "Kakashi..." She started hesitantly. I listened intently, as though one missed word would mean my death. "Eventually, I'm hoping for you to gain custody of Akira."

My entire mind went blank and the only bolded words flooding me inside out were _'what about Sasuke?'_.

* * *

A/N: The number one thing I have problems with when writing is tense. I tend to switch from present to past tense so often it becomes confusing. As I've been trying hard to fix it, I still haven't found a way. If anyone has any tips on how to remain constant with tense, please tell me. I need it. x.x Thanks.


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